The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of grapevine, Vitis vinifera L., which will hereinafter be denominated varietally as the ‘Autumn King’ grapevine, and, more particularly, to a grapevine which has fruit maturing for commercial harvesting and shipment approximately October 23 in the San Joaquin Valley of central California. The fruit has an attractive pale green skin coloration at maturity with large cylindrical to ovoid shape seedless berries.
The grapevine of the present invention originated from a hand-pollinated cross of United States Department of Agriculture selection ‘A61-20’ (unpatented) and the United States Department of Agriculture selection ‘B99-131’ (unpatented) made in 1993 at the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Postharvest Quality and Genetics Research Unit plots at California State University, Fresno, in Fresno Calif. The female was ‘A61-20’, a seeded white-fruited grapevine having large size, ovoid berries with firm flesh and good skin, and a neutral flavor. The fruit of the ‘A61-20’ ripen about two weeks before the instant variety. The pollen parent was ‘B99-131’, a seedless white fruited grape with very large size, oval berries with medium skin and medium firm flesh. The fruit of the ‘B99-131’ grapevine ripen one month before the variety of the subject invention. Both of the parents of the instant cultivar are hybrids of the grapevine genus and species Vitis vinifera L.
The seeds resulting from this controlled hybridization were germinated in the greenhouse during the winter and spring of 1994. The resulting seedling population totaled 534 individual plants. All seedlings were planted in the spring of 1994 in a vineyard at the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service plots on the California State University, Fresno, campus in Fresno, Calif. The seedlings fruited in the summer of 1996 and one, the grapevine of the present invention, was designated as ‘C67-120’ and selected for its attractive pale green seedless, medium firm, large berry size, good fruit quality and late maturity.
In 1997 at the inventors' direction, the grapevine of the subject invention was propagated asexually by rooting hardwood cuttings at Fresno, Calif. and a test planting of two grapevines of the subject invention was established in the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service plots on the California State University, Fresno campus. Subsequently in 1998 a larger test planting of 24 vines was established with rooted hardwood cuttings of the instant invention. The instant cultivar rooted readily from hardwood cuttings. All grapevines of the new variety planted from hardwood cutting propagation, fruited in the third season of growth after planting. All propagules, or resulting plants, of the present invention have been observed by the inventors to be true to type in that all asexual reproduced grapevines of the variety possessed the characteristics identical to those of the original parent grapevine.